In a cluster environment for computing, multiple hosts have access to a shared storage. A cluster file system protects and assures data coherency by individually locking files, or portions of files, until each is released. Yet, the cluster file system may be unaware of security needs and unable to handle encryption and decryption of files or portions of files. Conversely, a security system performing encryption and decryption may be unaware of multiple access attempts to files from applications operating in a cluster environment. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a solution which overcomes the drawbacks described above.